Chapter 122 The Scholar Who Favored His Concubine Over His Wife (Part Fourteen) Taking Pure Love to...

When Liu Xinhui woke up again, she felt a splitting headache and her limbs were as if they were tied up and she couldn't move. Half asleep, her eyelids twitched, and she woke up with a start.

Once she regained consciousness, she looked around and found herself lying in an unfamiliar room. The room was decorated quite elegantly, but there was a strange atmosphere about it.

"Miss Liu, you're awake?" A strange maid in pink carried a basin of water into the room. Seeing that she was awake, she gave a perfectly timed smile: "The madam instructed that once you're awake, she would help you with your washing and dressing."

"Who are you? Where is my mother? I need to see her! Mother! Mother!" Liu Xinhui struggled to get up, but found herself weak and powerless. She was stunned, and an ominous premonition suddenly welled up in her heart.

"Why... can't I move?" Liu Xinhui murmured.

The maid in pink said nothing more after hearing this, and called in another unfamiliar young maid. The two of them silently helped her wash and dress. Only then did Liu Xinhui realize that the two maids had actually dressed her in a festive wedding gown, the bright red silk satin so bright it hurt her eyes.

"What...what are you going to do?" Liu Xinhui shook her head frantically, crying out in terror, "Get out of my way! Mother? Where's my mother? Father! Father!"

As she was making a scene, Madam Tong slowly walked in, surrounded by several old women.

Liu Xinhui was taken aback when she saw Madam Tong enter the house. She glanced at the sky outside the window and asked in surprise, "Madam Tong? What are you doing in my house so late?"

Upon hearing this, Madam Tong smiled with pity and said softly, "Miss Liu, this is not your Liu family, but my Tong family."

"The Tong family? Why would I be in the Tong family?" Liu Xinhui asked, startled, her face stiff.

"Miss Liu, your parents have arranged your marriage to my son today. Tonight is your wedding night," Madam Tong said softly.

"No, it's impossible! I don't believe it!" Liu Xinhui shook her head desperately, tears welling up in her eyes again: "I want to see my mother! Mother! I want to go home!"

“Miss Liu, I only have one child in my life, Mi’er. Don’t worry, when you marry my son, I will treat you as my own daughter. Good child, hurry up and get ready, don’t miss the auspicious time,” Madam Tong said softly.

"No! No! I won't marry! Father! Mother! I want to go home!" Liu Xinhui cried out hoarsely.

Seeing this, Madam Tong frowned slightly, but still patiently advised, "Miss Liu, it's not good luck for you to be crying like this on such a joyous day." As she spoke, she turned her head slightly and gestured to the old woman next to her to hold Liu Xinhui down firmly.

Although Liu Xinhui was unwilling, she was ultimately no match for the overwhelming number of people around her, and no matter how much she cried and struggled, it was all in vain. The maids waiting nearby quickly stepped forward and finished dressing her.

At this moment, Liu Xinhui looked at the unfamiliar, heavily made-up face in the bronze mirror, her heart filled with despair, and tears kept sliding down her cheeks.

"Good child, stop crying." Madam Tong took a clean handkerchief from the maid and pretended to wipe away Liu Xinhui's tears.

Liu Xinhui jerked her head away, dodging Madam Tong's hand, and said viciously, "Shameless villain! Even if I die here today, I will never marry your stupid son!"

"Insolence!" Upon hearing this, Madam Tong's face instantly darkened. Her son was her Achilles' heel, and Liu Xinhui's attitude immediately enraged Madam Tong.

"Now that things have come to this, you have no choice but to agree! Guards! Take the bride out! The auspicious hour has arrived! Begin the wedding ceremony immediately!" With that, a ruthless glint flashed in Madam Tong's eyes as she coldly spoke.

"No, no... let me go! No!!"

Meanwhile, inside the Liu residence.

Mr. Liu and Mrs. Liu sat facing each other, the atmosphere in the room so oppressive it was hard to breathe. Mrs. Liu clutched her tear-soaked handkerchief tightly, her eyes already red from crying.

"Master, Hui'er... Hui'er is our own daughter! We... we..."

Master Liu's face was terribly gloomy. After a long while, he finally spoke with a sigh, "If we don't send Hui'er to the Tong family today, our Liu family will be finished in a couple of days. Master Tong has already promised me that as long as Hui'er is married off there, he will have the governor protect our Liu family. This is the only way right now."

"But Hui'er, she..." Madam Liu wanted to say something more, but was interrupted by Master Liu raising his hand.

"Enough! It's too late to say anything more. She brought this trouble upon herself, and she should bear the consequences herself." After saying this, Master Liu slowly closed his eyes, unwilling to say another word.

Song Ce was unaware that such a drastic change had occurred in the Liu family in just one night. He was currently at the brokerage firm, frowning as Sun Zhongren pulled out a familiar face from a row of maids and introduced her to him fluently.

“Young Master Song, this girl is named Shuang’er, and she’s only fourteen years old. Look at her figure and her face. Eight taels of silver is a very reasonable price for her!” Sun Zhongren said with a smile, trying to ingratiate himself.

When Song Ce bought the house, he found several capable maids for the Song family. However, since the young master Song and his wife were newly married, he found it too noisy with too many people in the house, so the matter was dropped. Now it seems that after the novelty of the marriage wore off, could it be that this young master Song has some ulterior motives?

Upon hearing this, Song Ce sighed slightly and replied, "Okay, deal."

Seeing that the deal was settled, Sun Zhongren smiled with even greater confidence, it seemed that he had indeed guessed right this time.

“Good! Young Master Song is indeed decisive. Today, please come with me to the government office to sign a legal contract. We are a legitimate business, and we are already registered with the county government.”

Hearing that the young master had bought her, Shuang'er, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but secretly look up at him.

The man was dressed in a light blue long robe. Although the fabric didn't look particularly luxurious, it was washed very cleanly without a single wrinkle. She quickly glanced at Song Ce's face; his features were gentle, and his words were kind. He didn't seem like the type to mistreat servants.

Whew… Shuang'er loosened her grip on the hem of her clothes slightly, and breathed a sigh of relief. After Sun Zhongren led Song Ce to complete the legal procedures at the county government office, he handed Shuang'er's indenture to him.

"Young Master Song, please accept this."

Song Ce nodded and took Shuang'er back home.

"My wife, I'm back!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Wanyao smiled shyly, immediately put down the embroidered purse in her hand, and got up to go out to greet him. However, when she saw a beautiful young woman dressed in shabby clothes but with outstanding looks following behind her husband, the smile on her face immediately froze.

"Husband, who is this...?"

Seeing this, Song Ce stepped forward, took Liu Wanyao's hand, and smiled gently: "Today when I went out, I happened to run into Sun Zhongren bringing in a batch of maids. During our marriage, you have been doing everything yourself, so I thought I would buy you a maid to serve you, so that you won't have to work so hard in the future."

Upon hearing this, Liu Wanyao felt slightly relieved. However, looking at Shuang'er's young and beautiful appearance, she still felt somewhat awkward.

"I see, thank you for your concern, Wanyao." She then looked at Shuang'er, who stood meekly to the side, and asked gently, "What's your name? How old are you?"

Upon hearing this, Shuang'er quickly curtsied and replied in a low voice, "Replying to Madam, my name is Shuang'er, and I am fourteen years old."

"Alright, Shuang'er, you'll be with me from now on!" After saying that, Liu Wanyao pointed to the room on the east side and said, "There aren't many rules in our family. From today onwards, you'll live in the east wing. You can help clean the room and cook some simple meals on weekdays."

"Yes, madam."

After the couple finished their lunch, Song Ce picked up the dishes he had prepared in advance from the food box and said softly to Liu Wanyao, "Wife, I'm going to the old house at home. Xiaoshan is still waiting for me there!"

"Husband, please wait a moment!" Liu Wanyao called out to Song Ce, got up and took out a small bundle from the low cabinet. "These are altered from your old clothes. Please take them to Xiaoshan with me!"

"good."

Seeing Liu Wanyao's hesitant expression, Song Ce paused, pulled her close, and asked in a low voice, "Wife, what's wrong?"

"Husband, I...I..." Liu Wanyao stammered for a long time before whispering, "What are your plans for this girl you bought today?"

"Plans? What plans?" Song Ce didn't react for a moment and casually said, "My wife can arrange it as she sees fit."

Liu Wanyao's face darkened slightly upon hearing this. "Then...then we'll wait until she's a little older, and I...I'll take care of this for my husband."

Song Ce was taken aback, then looked strangely at Liu Wanyao, who was pretending to be magnanimous, and felt both amused and exasperated. He simply reached out and pulled her close, lowered his head and pressed his forehead against hers, and asked in a low voice, "Wife, what are you thinking? Shuang'er is still a child! Do you really think of me as such a beast?"

Liu Wanyao's cheeks flushed from Song Ce's intimate gesture. She lightly punched him with the hand clutching the hem of her clothes: "I...I didn't...I just thought she was pretty, so I..." She lowered her eyes and stared at her toes, her voice growing softer and softer.

Song Ce smiled and leaned closer to her, "You, from now on you are not allowed to overthink things. You are enough for me in this life. If I ever have any other thoughts in the future, then tell me to stop..." Before he could finish speaking, Liu Wanyao widened her eyes and covered his mouth, "Husband, you are not allowed to talk nonsense."

"Okay, I won't say anything." He then took her hand that was covering his lips and lightly pecked her palm.

The couple were enjoying their time together when a loud crash suddenly came from the courtyard. Startled, they both looked in the direction of the sound and saw Shuang'er squatting on the ground, frantically cleaning up the overturned copper basin.

Her face flushed red, and the stray hairs on her forehead were soaked and clung to her cheeks, making her look extremely pitiful. Seeing this, Liu Wanyao quickly pushed Song Ce aside and hurried over to ask with concern, "Shuang'er, how could you be so careless? Are you hurt?"

"I'm so sorry, Madam. I... I was trying to fetch some water to tidy up the room, but the soles of my shoes got wet, and that's why... I didn't hold them properly. I... I didn't mean to..." Shuang'er's voice was choked with sobs, and her eyes were red.

Seeing her anxious expression, Liu Wanyao's resentment subsided considerably: "Alright, Shuang'er, we don't blame you. Come on, let's go change into dry clothes first, so you don't catch a cold." After saying that, she turned to Song Ce and said, "Husband, you should go to the old house quickly! Xiaoshan is waiting for you."

"Okay." Song Ce replied, picked up his bundle, and went out the door, heading towards the old Song family residence.

The old house wasn't close to the new house, and it took Song Ce about fifteen minutes to reach the door of the old house. At that moment, he heard the cheerful laughter of children coming from inside.

"Xiaoshan!" Song Ce called out to the courtyard.

Just then, Barbara, who was staring at the small hill by the door, heard a familiar voice, and his eyes lit up. He quickly got up, went to the door, and opened the gate.

"Master Song!" Xiao Shan grinned and ran to Song Ce's side, pretending to kneel down.

Song Ce quickly grabbed him and said gently, "Didn't I tell you? Don't kneel like that when you meet in the future." As he spoke, he handed the food box and bundle to Xiao Shan, "These are clothes my wife made for you, and some food too. Eat them while they're hot!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the few little kids who had been playing around immediately fell silent and covered their mouths tightly.